Intelligent. Nice. Determined. Imaginative. Generous. Outgoing.
Happy. Social. Thoughtful. Creative. Musical. Girly.
Great Big Sister. Little Miss Helpful.
My Indigo
The beginning - Due September 18th. Swore I wouldn't "let" this one be late. Didn't show till 4.5 months. Measured small all along. Lots (and lots) of extra ultrasounds due to my belly measuring small, but she was always 50th percentile. Hot, hot, hot summer that year. I would run my t-shirts under cold water and wear them soaking wet to stay cool. The 18th came and went. No sign of labor but at dinnertime on the 22nd I knew. I checked my bags and went to bed early. Contractions started 11:30PM. Didn't want to get sent home like with Chase so I waited extra long to call the birth center. Arrived at 4:30AM at 6cm. Labored in tub. Ready to push at 6AM. I'm a pro at this, back up, I got it, there will be no wasted contractions while in the pushing stage!
5 days late, Friday, September 23rd, 2005 at 6:29AM. 6lbs, 14.5oz, 20 inches long. Skinny little chicken leg girl.
One Day Old
Baby Indy was a dream baby. Ate, slept, cried very little, except when her big brother would throw tennis balls to Mom and Mom would miss. Poor little head. She only fit in preemie clothes for the first month. Excellent nurser. Slept through the night at 6 weeks. Sat at 4 months. I have no idea when she crawled but she walked 2 days before her 1st birthday. She did however start talking at 8 months and by her birthday, was talking in sentences. It was creepy and strange to see this little thing speaking so properly, barely walking, still a baby, really, but she was talking. And she was grammatically correct. Which creeped people out even more and astounded them at the same time. 7 years later, I might even think my memory was off, except I recently sat and watched old videos of her ON her birthday and in the months following. Videos of her telling full JOKES. Videos of her describing to my grandmother what we did at the library or the YMCA that day. Videos of her talking about her toys in the bath, descriptively.
I confess, I did actually buy these fairy wings before we confirmed she was a girl...
Little Ar-teest!
We joke and say that Indy must've been a bard in a previous life, someone who's job it was to travel around the countryside and sing the news and tales of all happenings. . She sings. Always has. It came as soon as she could talk. She sings her life. Songs about cars passing by. Which parts to wash in the shower. Soap bubbles. Friends. TV shows and books. Everything is subject matter for Indy's songs. She doesn't know it, but I have a significant amount of video that includes just a standing shot of the sink in the bathroom, because I was recording her singing in the shower without her knowing it and without recording the shower cuz that's illegal. At 8, she obviously showers herself now, but I went up the other day to see if she was done, and stood in the bathroom to listen to what the song sounds like now.
She still sings. And I love it.
Preschool years: Dolls, trucks, purses and shoes. So many Moms out there "push" their little girls to be girly, putting them in frilly little outfits with sparkly shoes. I was fine with Indy wearing Chase's hand-me-down camo. By 18 months, we'd pass the shoe section in a store and she'd stick her feet out and say, "Shoes for me please." She'd always pick the sparkliest thing there was. It made me barf in my mouth a little bit, but I'd get it for her. She had a purse collection of fancy bags. I still used my Army green slingover bag. She wasn't getting this girly thing from me. Accessories. She had to have barrettes, bows, clips, bracelets, necklaces, rings, etc.
18 months
My First Tattoo
Wildwood Beach, NJ, age 2
3rd Birthday
Age 3
Boating on the Schuylkill River
Indy and Mom-Mom in 2009, age 4
Age 5-7: First day of kindergarten, she came home and said, "I got my best friend." Sure, ok. Kids say funny things. 3 days later we met her best friend's parents, who said their daughter came home day 1 and said the same thing. They are still in the same class and still BFF's. But in the 3 years of school, these two girls have expanded their group. They have a gaggle now, 7 girls who all hang together. I call them the "Vowel Crowd" because they all have names that start with vowels, all 7 of them, except no one starts with "U!" Indy excelled in K and 1st, getting high marks and flawless test grades. Teachers say she always helps others and is a joy to have in class. We tried soccer and dance, she liked the practice but not the game or performance. She'd rather sit and watch Chase play.
XMas '09
A new baby sis in 2010
First Day of Kindergarten
BFF's
6th Birthday
Epcot 2012
Meeting Mickey, age 6
XMas 2012, age 7
And now, age 8! - On her birthday, we had magical plans. We'd get homework done and meet Dad and Avia up at Sweet N' Sassy to get her ears pierced (totally missed the boat when she was a baby!). Then off for a special dinner of..... pizza. Hey, it's her day. Except the bus came, and the kid I babysit got off by himself. What??
"Where's Indigo?"
"She didn't get off the bus."
"WHAT?"
Yeah, so apparently sometimes she's SO social, that she forgets to pay attention to what's going on around her. After some phone calls, the bus driver came back around and dropped off a tearful little Indigo. The bus driver even gave her a flashlight out of his bag so she "could always find her way home..." And THEN we did homework, went to Sweet N' Sassy, got ears pierced, ate pizza and sang "Happy Birthday" over an ice cream sandwich. A very magical evening indeed.
"Where's Indigo?"
"She didn't get off the bus."
"WHAT?"
Yeah, so apparently sometimes she's SO social, that she forgets to pay attention to what's going on around her. After some phone calls, the bus driver came back around and dropped off a tearful little Indigo. The bus driver even gave her a flashlight out of his bag so she "could always find her way home..." And THEN we did homework, went to Sweet N' Sassy, got ears pierced, ate pizza and sang "Happy Birthday" over an ice cream sandwich. A very magical evening indeed.
Indy also took some friends to BounceU to celebrate her big 8 and they had ice cream cake later at the house.
Currently: Took violin for a year with the Suzuki method, a fast learner making beautiful music. Just getting into baton. We thought we sent her to a week of dance camp but it turned out to be actually Baton Twirling camp, and she loved it! Picked it up like a rock star and now she's thinking about joining a competitive team. Always planning playdates. Loves being outside. Earned the nickname "The Little Lawyer" from Mom as she always sticks up for her big brother no matter what and tries to make a plea deal with Mom to lesson his punishment, even if she is the one who got the raw end of the deal from him to begin with. Plays "Mom" to the littles, always directing and meddling. She's learning (slowly) to let them be themselves, make their own decisions, not to carry the baby around all the time (for this, he bites her).
She has a contagious smile, a girly giggle, a stubborn streak. Would sleep in every day if she could. Reads all the time. Always crafting. Can do Rainbow Loom like she invented it. Will do anything for her friends and family. A fine daughter, indeed!
She has a contagious smile, a girly giggle, a stubborn streak. Would sleep in every day if she could. Reads all the time. Always crafting. Can do Rainbow Loom like she invented it. Will do anything for her friends and family. A fine daughter, indeed!
Before ear piercing...
....And After!
